Experience
by spockandawe
Summary: Tarrlok knows a great deal more than Korra about almost everything, and it was child's play to manipulate her as he pleased. When the game grew to include courtship, though, he got more than he'd ever bargained for.


It must be strange to be such an innocent. He'd been prepared to plot around her, ferret out her plans and Tenzin's, undermine them before she suspected a thing. Avatar Aang had been noted for his open, ingenuous manner, but he had slipped into the political games like a master. This girl was nothing like that. Korra was just as naive as she looked. He'd spent long nights arranging his plans to fit her, whether she wanted to be in them or not. There had been hours devoted to speculating about her goals, what desires drove her. Hours, wasted. He'd worried for nothing. She was seemingly incapable of planning ahead or believing others might have ulterior motives. She was impulsive and hot-headed, and there was no block between her mind and her mouth.

It was almost disappointing. He'd been prepared to match wits with some kind of pure, spiritual entity, and he wound up with a teenage girl inclined to property damage. Certainly he'd be able to manipulate her. It would be child's play. Really, it was such an anticlimax that he hardly wanted to bother anymore. Well, he still had his own goals and Korra was a valuable piece on the game board. A reckless young lady with the reporters of the city ready to pounce on anything newsworthy... he could work with that.

There was a little more charm to it than he thought. Normally it was best to make sure a person thought they had the upper ground, that they were the one in control. There was no need for such measures here. No, it was quite entertaining to keep Korra off-balance. Tenzin might have been able to shield her from him, but she had a delightful independent streak that wasn't going to do her any services here.

The courtship had just been part of the game at first. He doubted she'd recognize it as such, but she'd been raised in the Water Tribe. She was intelligent enough to distrust him, but her subconscious saw all the familiar rituals and gestures that were part of their shared culture. He showered her with expensive gifts, more and more extravagant as time went on. He waved them aside as little nothings for the Avatar; she dismissed them as bribes to persuade her to join his task force. But some small corner of her mind had to know that she was a young, beautiful woman who had caught the eye of an unmarried man.

The real shock had been when she accepted his advances. He hadn't ever thought that was a possibility, and suddenly he was the one who was off-balance. That wasn't good. He could make sweeping, theatrical gestures, but he had no idea where go after that. Between one thing and another- Well, he was a busy man. Politics wasn't a job that he could leave behind at the end of the day. It was his life. Somehow there had just never been time for a woman.

The way Korra eyed him made him nervous, actually nervous. He knew the direction things were going and he had no idea how to head it off. Whether to head it off. No matter what his political plans were, her attentions had been a pleasant surprise. Just a light touch from her hand was enough to send his heart racing, and the way she looked at him made him blush bright red. What did a man even do at a time like this? Well, there were the mechanical basics. He knew those. He'd seen the cheap, tawdry magazines, overheard men talking in bars. But that couldn't be everything. There were holes in his knowledge and he needed to fill them.

Then of course there was the question of how he would go about learning more. It wasn't as though he had close friends to discuss the matter with. Was he supposed to casually tell Tenzin over lunch that he was thinking about sleeping with the airbender's ward? That would be an unimaginable nightmare. There had to be a solution; he'd find it eventually. Somehow, eventually never came. He wasn't really the one driving the courtship any longer. Korra was definitely the one in control.

It was her idea that they go out for dinner at an upscale restaurant. A meal to discuss his future plans for the task force. Yes. At some point the conversation turned to Water Tribe cuisine and he happened to mention a few tribal delicacies stored at his home. Well, at the look on her face he had to invite her back to his house to have some. The genuine smile on her face was a surprise. She hadn't been angling for any favors. That was the first moment it really occurred to him that an open nature like hers wasn't a bad thing at all.

Well, back at his house she'd perched up on a stool watching him as he cooked. It was wrinkling the expensive dress he'd given her a few weeks ago, but he couldn't bring himself to care. When she saw the rows of brightly painted, corked bottles in his pantry, she had to know what they were. Ah, that was his personal store of distilled cactus juice. He'd had it specially imported from the finest brewers in Ba Sing Se. She'd never had cactus juice? Well, what better time than now? Again, she hadn't been trying to get anything from him, and he couldn't help smiling at her genuine pleasure. She closed her eyes and shivered as she took that first sip. She insisted he have some too, and they ended up drinking cactus juice and laughing together over plates of seaweed noodles and crab legs.

He'd had been lost in thought about how pleasant it was to spend an evening this way when Korra put a hand on his cheek. She leaned in close to kiss him, and he shut his eyes as her lips pressed to his. When she finally broke away, she was smiling. "Tarrlok, would you like to sleep with me?"

That was a shock. Spirits. This was it, everything he'd never prepared for. He opened his mouth to say no. "Yes."

She didn't wait for a word more. She gave him one quick kiss, then jumped up to her feet and pulled him along behind her as she left the kitchen. "Where's your bedroom, then?"

It took a moment for him to remember himself. He needed to fix this. Delay her until next week. Tomorrow. But it was so hard to concentrate with her fingers twined with his. Her thumb brushed against the back of his hand, and without his conscious direction he turned to lead her down the correct hallway. Once he was in his room, he tried to collect his dignity about him. He eased out of his jacket, hanging it on the hook next to the door. The shoes were placed with the others. He just needed to think. He knew approximately what needed to happen.

Korra had thrown herself onto the bed, kicking her slippers off over the side. His breath caught at the way her hair spilled over the blankets, and when she reached out a hand to him he was powerless to resist her. She pulled him down hard on the bed, rolling over to straddle him and bending down for another kiss. Ah, kisses. He'd done that already, and it had gone well enough. He'd manage.

Tarrlok didn't know what to expect when she nibbled at his lower lip. His mouth opened, and before he could say a word her tongue was in his mouth. An unexpected development, but he managed not to show any surprise. He followed as best as he could, and he could feel her smile against his lips. Her hands were on his cheeks, but he hardly knew what to do with his. It felt horribly incomplete to leave them lying there at his side. Was he supposed to put them on her cheeks? There's hardly be room for the kiss if he did that. Finally, he settled for gingerly resting them on her hips.

That was well enough for some time. He was definitely enjoying himself and she seemed to be having a good time as well. Of course, it couldn't last. After a while she reached down to grab his hands and placed them firmly on her breasts. Oh. That worked too, then. He'd settled into the kiss again when she took his right hand and began to move it. When she let it go, he was frozen with indecision for a moment. He'd seen this. He could, ah- His mind went blank and he settled for weakly rubbing her chest.

Korra pulled away, and he let his hands fall. "Come on Tarrlok, you can do better than that." She grinned playfully. "Let me really have it."

"Yes, of course Korra." That was the smooth, confident voice he used when he needed even Tenzin to believe him, but her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"You're sure you know what you're doing?"

"Certainly."

She paused for a moment, then rolled off to lie beside him. "Show me."

"Show you? Show you what?"

"Show me what you can do to a woman," she laughed. Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I want you, Tarrlok. Don't you want me?"

He tried to keep his self-assured smile in place as he positioned himself over her. He leaned down for a kiss, but she turned her head away. "I'm tired of just kisses. Give me something more." She arched up so her chest brushed against his and laughed again at the way he blushed.

He paused for a second to consider. Sex. Well, they'd need to be naked. He reached for the tiny buttons that ran down the front of her dress. He felt Korra wrap her legs around his, pulling him forward, but he tried to concentrate on the job at hand. It felt like she was doing everything in her power to distract him. She was running her hands over his shoulders, through his hair, down his neck as he tried to undo the buttons. His knuckles grazed her breasts as he did to get a grip on fabric pulled taut, and the way her chest heaved with each breath didn't make it any easier to work.

Finally, the dress was undone. He leaned back as she sat back and shrugged it off. The expensive silk went off over the edge of the bed to join the shoes. What next? The underwear? He was just reaching for her bra when Korra spoke.

"I hadn't thought you were a virgin."

"Virgin? Korra, where would you get that idea?"

"_Tarrlok_. Please. You don't have any idea what you're doing, do you?"

"I have some idea," he said stiffly.

He half-expected her to give up on him then, but she patted him on the cheek. "That's adorable! How about I give you some help, then. Since you're a bit lost, I can tell you what to do." She didn't even give him a chance to answer before she grabbed his hair and pulled him down on top of her. "You've been figuring out this kiss business. How about using that mouth on more of me?" He hesitated for a moment. "My ears. My neck, my shoulders, anywhere."

Fine, then. He dropped kisses in a line up the side of her neck, feeling her pulse beating against his mouth. Up her jawline. Her ear.

"Come on, Tarrlok. I said mouth. There's more to work with than just your lips."

Like what? Weren't you supposed to use your lips for kisses? He gingerly took her earlobe in his teeth. That was the right answer. He was close enough to hear her breath catch when he gently nibbled. That emboldened him and he moved down to her shoulder and the gentle curves of her chest, letting his teeth graze against the smooth skin.

"Is that all? How about you actually use them instead of just pretending."

He pulled back, but she still had one of his ponytails and he couldn't move far. "You can't mean for me to bite you."

"That's exactly what I mean. And don't you dare be gentle either. I want to feel it."

She arched her back again, throwing her head back. He paused for a moment next to her neck before letting his teeth close around the soft, unmarked skin. He only squeezed lightly. He didn't want to do anything painful.

"You can do better than that," she laughed. Her voice was mocking as she continued, "What, do you think you're going to hurt me? Please." He was stung and bit hard. When she gasped, he tried to pull away but she held him close. "Better. Harder. Come on, leave a mark."

"Korra, no. I can't do that to you."

She looked back up at him and smiled. "Do you know why? This is what will happen in the morning. The first time I look into a mirror I'm going to see all these little bruises. All from you. I could heal them, but I won't." She pulled him in close so close her lips brushed his ear and whispered, "They'll take days to fade on their own. Maybe longer. Every time I look at myself, I'll be remembering exactly what you did to me."

"Korra-"

She wrapped her legs around his, rocking against him. "I want you to _take_ me, Tarrlok." He couldn't help a groan. His pants were uncomfortably tight, and he reached down to fumble with his belt. Korra caught his hands, and he looked at her in surprise. "Oh no. I'm not ready yet. I need more from you first. Make me moan, make me beg for more. I need you to give me everything you've got."

The bra had to go. It fastened in front, which was a small mercy. He couldn't have handled trying to figure out these hooks and such working blind. He didn't need her prompting to bend his head to a breast. Teeth. She liked teeth, and he let them scrape over her nipple. She gasped and wriggled against him, but she wrapped a fist into his hair and held him in place. Her free hand groped for his and planted it firmly on her other breast. At first he was content just to feel and explore the new territory, but she couldn't be content with that for long.

"Harder!" She pushed him back. "This is how I want you to touch me." It was much rougher than what he'd been doing. The way she played with herself was almost hypnotic. He reached out tentatively to join her, and she smiled her encouragement. "Come on, don't be afraid to use some force. It doesn't hurt as much as you think."

As he played with her breasts, she began to undo the front of his shirt and smooth the fabric back from his chest. Every brush of her fingers against his bare skin left him aching for more. He shut his eyes and leaned into that touch. He had to break away for a moment to toss the shirt off the side of the bed, and then she pulled him down on top of her again. These kisses were hard and demanding. He found her breasts again, roughly caressing them as she clung to him.

One of his legs lay between her thighs, and as he pressed forward he felt it brush against her core. She moaned against his mouth, and he had to smile as he did it again. She couldn't let it rest there, though. He straddled one of her legs, and moved that thigh up to rub against him. He broke the kiss, gasping for air. They continued for that way in some time. When he bit her neck, she cried out and clutched him to her chest. He pulled back just far enough to see the bruise beginning to form. "More," she managed to say, and pulled him to her again. He was happy to oblige.

When Korra pushed him away, his first instinct was to reach for his belt again, but he stopped. She was slowly, slowly sliding her underwear down, finally kicking it off somewhere over the side of the bed. His breath caught as he stared at the naked woman lying in front of him. He knew she was watching his expression and grinning from ear to ear, but he couldn't stop. The belt. He was about to undo it when she stopped him again.

"Korra. Eventually I'm going to have to take off my pants."

She laughed. "I know. Just a minute more." She gave him a sly smile. "I need you to touch me."

"Certainly." Wasn't that what he'd been doing?

"Right here." Her legs spread apart and her smile grew wider and wider. He bent, but hesitated.

"Oh, Tarrlok. Don't you know what you're supposed to do with a woman? Do you know what a clit is?"

"Of course I do," he managed.

"Then touch that." She reached down and parted her folds with her fingers. "Right there. It's not difficult."

His first touch was as rough as he'd been with her nipples. She made a noise somewhere between a gasp and a whimper. "Be careful, it's sensitive-" That was the first time tonight he'd felt like he had anything resembling control. She fell back against the bed as he flicked her clit, able to say nothing more than, "Oh, oh-" As soon as he was sure she wasn't watching, he licked her. She gave a strangled cry and writhed under him.

It was too much, too much. He needed to be in her. He'd never needed anything so badly in his life. It only took seconds to slip out of the last of his clothing, but they were the longest seconds he'd ever lived through. Korra propped herself on her elbows as he knelt and tried to position himself at her entrance. He was clumsy and it took too long, but he finally pushed forward and buried himself deep inside her.

He slumped forward against her, arms braced against the bed as he began to thrust against her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. She was so wet and hot and sweet and more than he'd ever expected. He quickly lost himself in the slide of skin on skin. The tension building inside him was familiar, but so much stronger than anything he'd ever felt on his own. Korra was having trouble doing more than moan, but she managed to gasp, "Touch- Touch me-" As soon as he understood he reached down between her legs.

It only took a single finger brushing against her clit to send her over the edge. Her fingernails raked down her back as she arched against him. The way she tightened around him was too much to bear. He came, moaning, "Korra, Korra-" and collapsing against her as he shook. They lay there for some time, both breathing hard and clinging tightly to each other.

After some time, she shoved him off to the side. "You're heavy, you know that?" He opened his mouth to apologize, but she was already pressing a finger to his lips. She tucked herself in against his chest and refused to move even to get properly under the sheets. He somehow managed to pull a blanket over both of them without breaking that contact. She extinguished the single dim lamp with a gesture, and nestled in even closer, her legs twining with him under the blanket. He was just beginning to drift off to sleep when he heard her murmur, "Same time tomorrow?"


End file.
